In Search of Variables Distinguishing Low and High Achievers in Music Sight Reading Task

Abstract

The unrehearsed performance of music, called 'sight reading' (SR), is a basic skill for all musicians. Despite the merits of expertise theory, there is no comprehensive model which can classify subjects into high and low performance groups. This study is the first that classifies subjects and is based on an extensive experiment measuring the total SR performance of 52 piano students. Classification methods (cluster analysis, classification tree, linear discriminant analysis) were applied. Results of a linear discriminant analysis revealed a 2-class solution with 4 predictors (predictive error: 15%).